Q: My dog trainer has advised me to use tennis balls to train my Labrador to hunt and retrieve but I’ve heard there are risks from balls. Are tennis balls dangerous…
Shooting Times
The history of spaniels
If you want to wind up your cocker spaniel-owning friends, just tell them that their dogs are springers. They may argue otherwise but, technically, it’s true. History of the spaniel…
Which calibre is best for wild boar?
What calibre is best for wild boar? I intend to go wild boar shooting soon. In your opinion, what calibre would you say is best for boar?
Braised lentils with duck and venison
My mother was a cook ahead of her time. I must have been a teenager, some 40 years ago, when she made a dish of French Puy lentils for lunch.…
How can I protect my dog’s ears from grass seeds?
Grass seeds can easily become lodged in a dog’s ears or paws. Grass seeds are a particular problem for spaniels As the hay fever season fades away, so the grass-seed…
Why tweed is the original performance clothing
Ten years ago, I was invited by a Scandinavian clothing brand to cover the launch of a new range of shooting clothing. The grand unveiling would take place at a…
Walk on the wild side
Have you ever discovered that you have become fashionable by accident? Wildfowlers shared this experience a few years ago when metropolitan young men intentionally started sporting beards and looking unkempt.…
The risks of over-exercising a puppy
Q: We have recently acquired a new puppy. Both parents were hip and elbow tested and found to be clear and I’ve been told by the breeder to be careful…
Venison sausage and egg muffin recipe
Breakfast is often described as the most important meal of the day and Cai ap Bryn's venison and sausage muffin really does it justice.
Unusual gundog breeds
David Tomlinson suggests some unusual gundog breeds for the adventurous Gun who fancies something a little bit different
How to use a hide for pigeon shooting
Almost all of us, at some point over the course of a season, will end up shooting from a hide of some sort, be it a duck hide, grouse butt…
How do you transfer shotguns between certificates?
A reader asked for some advice regarding looking after his friends guns. Graham Downing advises on carrying out shotgun transfer between certificates.
Recipe for cider brined pheasant
One of the few criticisms thrown at game meat is that it can sometimes have the propensity to go dry after cooking. This is especially true of pheasant if it…
Cocker spaniels come in almost any colour you can think of
Last season, I admired a handsome black cocker dog I met on a shoot. His owner, unaware that I make a living from writing about gundogs, proceeded to give me…
Wildfowlers face worrying future
Wildfowlers in two of the sport’s most important heartlands may be unable to shoot because long-standing ‘consents’, which allow sustainable wildfowling on European protected sites, have not been renewed by…
Mercedes-Benz G-Class £94,000
Mercedes launched the G-Class — also known as the G-Wagen — in 1979, and it’s the longest-running line out of Stuttgart. Synonymous with oligarchs and footballers, the G-Wagen is a…
The mighty stags of the English lowlands
Lockdown has been a time for daydreaming. Trapped indoors for days on end and confined to barracks during a beautiful spring, thoughts have now begun to return towards sporting ambitions.…
How much do trained dogs cost?
Dogs are amazing creatures and some are worth a lot of money. We’ve been reading about the high prices puppies have reached during the COVID lockdown as everyone decides they…
Why aren’t golden retrievers more popular in the field?
You’ll see plenty of Labradors in the field but not so many golden retrievers. Which is rather illogical because a golden retriever that has been well-trained is definitely the equal…
What your puppy will need to get used to when lockdown ends
This has been an unusual time for all of us in pretty much every aspect of our lives and dog training is no exception. In some ways lockdown has helped…